Ranji Trophy 2022/23: Best Playing XI from the tournament
The Ranji Trophy 2022/23 culminated last Sunday. Saurashtra regained the championship by defeating Bengal in the final. It was a one-sided contest as Saurashtra wrapped up the game inside four days, recording a nine-wicket victory.
The tournament started on December 13, 2022, with 38 teams from different parts of India vying for the trophy. Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Bengal, Saurashtra, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Andhra, and Uttarakhand emerged as the top eight teams.
Eventually, Saurashtra and Bengal qualified for the final, where Jaydev Unadkat's brilliance helped Saurashtra win their second Ranji Trophy championship. Now that the tournament has ended, here's a look at the best playing XI from Ranji Trophy 2022/23.
Openers - Mayank Agarwal and Harvik Desai (wk)
Karnataka opener Mayank Agarwal will open the innings with Saurashtra wicket-keeper Harvik Desai for this team. Agarwal was the leading run-scorer in the tournament with 990 runs in nine matches. He scored three centuries and six half-centuries for his state team.
Desai was among the top run-getters for Saurashtra. He aggregated 614 runs in 10 matches, registering three hundreds and three fifties, with his highest score being 108.
Middle Order - Dhruv Shorey, Anustup Majumdar, Sachin Baby, and Arpit Vasavada
What a performence by Saurashtra captain Arpit Vasavada in Ranji trophy Semifinal against Karnataka - 202(405) & 47*(47). And now Saurashtra in the final of this Ranji trophy. Outstanding, Arpit Vasavada. https://t.co/MU6Jq9eh8t
Delhi's Dhruv Shorey will bat in the middle order along with veteran Bengal batter Anustup Majumdar, Kerala's star Sachin Baby and Saurashtra's deputy skipper Arpit Vasavada.
Shorey was the top run-scorer among teams eliminated after the group stage. He scored 859 runs in seven matches for Delhi, with his highest score being 252*. Majumdar played an integral role in Bengal's success, aggregating 867 runs in 15 innings. His batting average was more than 60.
Baby was the fifth-highest run-getter in the competition. Playing for Kerala, he scored 830 runs in 13 innings, registering three hundreds.
Vasavada won the Player-of-the-Series award for his 907 runs in the tournament. The Saurashtra batter impressed everyone with a splendid double century in the semifinal against Karnataka.
All rounders and Bowlers: Jalaj Saxena, Shams Mulani, Akash Deep, Avesh Khan, and Baltej Singh
Featuring in this week's #WednesdayWallpaper is our spin-king Shams Mulani 👑
Mumbaikars, head to our Instagram stories and get this exclusive wallpaper 📲
#MCA #Mumbai #Cricket #IndianCricket #Wankhede #BCCI https://t.co/l87zNwLK8C
Kerala's Jalaj Saxena and Mumbai's Shams Mulani will be the two spin-bowling all-rounders of this team. They were the top two wicket-takers of the Ranji Trophy 2022/23. Saxena topped the charts with 50 wickets in seven matches, while Mulani scalped 46 wickets in the same number of games.
Madhya Pradesh's Avesh Khan, Bengal's Akash Deep and Punjab's Baltej Singh will form the bowling attack of this team. Deep starred in Bengal's success with 41 wickets in 10 matches. Khan bagged 38 wickets in eight games, with his best figures being 7/38.
Medium pacer Baltej accounted for 37 wickets in eight matches. He recorded three five-wicket hauls and two 10-wicket match hauls in the Ranji Trophy 2022/23.
Winning captain Jaydev Unadkat played only four matches this season. Otherwise, even he would have made it to this team.
Best Playing XI of Ranji Trophy 2022/23 season
Mayank Agarwal, Harvik Desai (wk), Dhruv Shorey, Anustup Majumdar, Sachin Baby, Arpit Vasavada, Jalaj Saxena, Shams Mulani, Akash Deep, Avesh Khan, and Baltej Singh.